LAS VEGAS, NEVADA—Withings, the company that brought us the Wi-Fi-enabled "smart scale," is now dipping its toes into the crowded activity tracker market. Meet its Smart Activity Tracker. The tiny device can track how many steps are taken, how far you have gone up or down stairs, how many calories you have burned throughout the day, and whether or not you're getting good sleep. It can even measure your pulse.

Like the Fitbit One, Nike+ FuelBand, or Jawbone Up, Withings Smart Activity Tracker syncs with most iOS and Android devices via Bluetooth, allowing you to analyze the data it collects throughout the day. Withings' app can also collect and combine data from its smart scales.

According to Withings CEO Cédric Hutchings, you can't improve your fitness without having solid data and good analysis. But, the Smart Activity Tracker takes things one step further. "It will send push alerts to your iPhone if you have been too inactive," he told Ars. Such alerts might be the sort of nagging encouragement sedentary tech-heads need to get up and away from the computer desk often enough to make a difference.

The device itself is very small—Withings says it's a scant eight grams—and it fits in your pocket or can attach to your arm with an included wrist band. Hutchings explained that wearing on the wrist is best for tracking sleep, and the subtle arm movements give the best indication of sleep patterns. It also has a touch-sensitive display for swiping from one mode to the other, and small sensors on the rear measure pulse readings from your finger.

As we mentioned, fitness tech is an area that's really heating up. We'll be digging into the array of options here on the CES show floor–there is a dedicated area just for fitness related gadgets and apps—in the next couple of days.

If you are trying to win a race of some sort then you need a HRM and a GPS enabled watch for pacing and for tracking training progress, sure.

If you just want to stay fit, look within yourself for motivation and partner up with someone and do it together. Motivation won't come from a gadget. And eat less and more healthy foods. Swim bike run row hike climb a mountain. You don't even need a gym or any gym equipment.

According to Withings CEO Cédric Hutchings, you can't improve your fitness without having solid data and good analysis.

Hmmm...whatever did we do to improve our fitness without computers? I'm pretty damn sure that 99% of the people on earth could improve their fitness just by exercising and eating well without all this solid data and good analysis. Maybe the other 1% is so fit that they need this.

I've been interested in the Fitbit One, however, I haven't bought one due to the fact that it currently only support iOS devices via Bluetooth syncing. When I read this article, I assumed that Fitbit announced the Android Devices that they were compatible with, and supported syncing via Android.

However, I just went to their webpage, and I noticed it still says "Select Android devices coming soon" under the "Wireless Sync to Mobile" section.

So, unless I don't know something (which is quite possible), I'd say that the Fitbit One only support iOS devices.

Everyone single one of these fitness trackers manages to come up short of what I need. I am just looking for something that tracks running, biking and number of steps with a measure of water resistance that will allow me to take it in the shower. This is not too complicated. I will also like to keep it on my wrist and therefore showing time will be nice.

I have an older Android phone, without Bluetooth 4.0, so I haven't tried it. I let it log to my PC, which it does automatically when I get near it--it comes with a Bluetooth 4.0 dongle for the PC. I can check my results on the web from any type of computer/phone.

These types of devices can be used to motivate you. If you keep it with you all the time (I just throw it into my pocket with my keys), then it will tirelessly log your steps. If you are more relaxed about it like me, you can check your results every few days. When you're sitting on your ass all day, the results glaringly stare at you in your face and you can either start exercising more or throw it away if you don't want to be reminded about how lazy you are being.

Everyone single one of these fitness trackers manages to come up short of what I need. I am just looking for something that tracks running, biking and number of steps with a measure of water resistance that will allow me to take it in the shower. This is not too complicated. I will also like to keep it on my wrist and therefore showing time will be nice.

MotoACTV. Besides fitness, I use it for my watch and music player. The shower may be risky, but I suspect it can handle a little bit of splash.

If you just want to stay fit, look within yourself for motivation and partner up with someone and do it together. Motivation won't come from a gadget.

Bullshit. Motivation is entirely dependent on your personality. I happen to be fascinated by technology, it's no accident I make my living that way. The best strategy to build positive habits is to work at it incrementally, and that means you should absolutely exploit your existing habits as fully as possible.

Quote:

And eat less and more healthy foods. Swim bike run row hike climb a mountain. You don't even need a gym or any gym equipment.

People have a career and family and thus time and attention are scarce resources, why is this so hard to comprehend?

That MotoACTV looks like quite a device. It is a tiny Android tablet on your wrist. It can even be rooted and play Angry Birds! If only it played Audible books, I would use it for my workouts in place of my MP3 player.

I think a device the size/battery life of the Withings/Fitbit but more of the MotoACTV features would be perfect.

If you just want to stay fit, look within yourself for motivation and partner up with someone and do it together. Motivation won't come from a gadget.

Bullshit. Motivation is entirely dependent on your personality. I happen to be fascinated by technology, it's no accident I make my living that way. The best strategy to build positive habits is to work at it incrementally, and that means you should absolutely exploit your existing habits as fully as possible.

Quote:

And eat less and more healthy foods. Swim bike run row hike climb a mountain. You don't even need a gym or any gym equipment.

People have a career and family and thus time and attention are scarce resources, why is this so hard to comprehend?

You seem offended? Why is that? I don't know you.

Your first statement, while it may be true that different people are motivated by different things, but when it comes to fitness it is a lifelong commitment that is only found within you. The only thing that helps is having a like minded partner to work out with. A gadget may make you go out and use it... for all of a few weeks. Then what?

I don't understand your second statement. How is driving to a gym, working out there while staring at your gadget, and driving back, less time consuming than just riding a bike straight off your front door, or driving to a swimming pool? What are you trying to say?

Besides, you are approaching this all wrong if you are trying to fit fitness into your lifestyle. Fitness should be an integral part of your lifestyle, not something you do as a chore every once in a while when you have time.

Walk to the grocery store next time. Carry the bags back home. Or ride the bike to work. That's what I'm talking about.

Everyone single one of these fitness trackers manages to come up short of what I need. I am just looking for something that tracks running, biking and number of steps with a measure of water resistance that will allow me to take it in the shower. This is not too complicated. I will also like to keep it on my wrist and therefore showing time will be nice.

How much money are you willing to spend?

Garmin 910XT + footpod. Transfer the data wirelessly off the device to your computer and upload to Garmin connect or training peaks.

That's what I use from the moment the gun goes off in the water, to the bike, to the run and finish. It survives a 2.4 mile swim in the ocean. It'd be fine in the shower.

Your first statement, while it may be true that different people are motivated by different things, but when it comes to fitness it is a lifelong commitment that is only found within you. The only thing that helps is having a like minded partner to work out with. A gadget may make you go out and use it... for all of a few weeks. Then what?.

Dilbert you have a particular way of working out that works for you. That's great. But your mistake is assuming that this is the only way that it works with anyone.

For example, I work out very consistently, by myself. If I had to sync up my crazy schedule with another person I wouldn't work out half the time I do now. Having a gadget is reminding me to keep active even when I'm not working out.

Just because it doesn't work for you doesn't mean it doesn't work for others. If I didn't believe that then I'd be telling you that the -only- way to stay in shape is to use these devices and that it is a big mistake for you to work out with a partner. See how it sounds?

According to Withings CEO Cédric Hutchings, you can't improve your fitness without having solid data and good analysis.

Hmmm...whatever did we do to improve our fitness without computers? I'm pretty damn sure that 99% of the people on earth could improve their fitness just by exercising and eating well without all this solid data and good analysis. Maybe the other 1% is so fit that they need this.

Got there first. +1

I almost projectile vomited from the sheer fallacy that a nation of fat-asses can't make progress without some gizmo tracking their every step.

The only reason I might be interested in the product is the heart-monitoring, to make sure I'm not endangering myself during plyometrics. Other than that the only people who might need this are professional athletes who need that extra 1/100 second. Oh wait, none of the great athletes before the 1980s had heart monitors....

This isn't much of an article. It reads like it's just the regurgitation of a press release.

How about an actual review of the thing? ...preferably with a compare and contrast w/ the competition that you mentioned and linked to.

I've been wanting something like one of these for some time. But none of them seem to have all the features I want. The inclusion of the heart-rate monitor makes me guess that this one will have a more accurate calorie count than the ones that are just warmed-over pedometers. But actual details would be nice in an article.

Only concern is that someone will turn this data into ad targeting.I can just see it now: You didn't get a good sleep last night because of the heavy traffic, and you wake up to see an ad for sleeping pills on your phone.

Everyone single one of these fitness trackers manages to come up short of what I need. I am just looking for something that tracks running, biking and number of steps with a measure of water resistance that will allow me to take it in the shower. This is not too complicated. I will also like to keep it on my wrist and therefore showing time will be nice.

...If you just want to stay fit, look within yourself for motivation and partner up with someone and do it together. Motivation won't come from a gadget. ...

Except when the gadget allows me to partner up with someone who I otherwise wouldn't be able to. In the job I just finished I worked shifts with a pattern that didn't allow me to partner up with a 9-5er on a regular basis to exercise but both having Fitbit 1s allowed us to have a little friendly competition that did motivate us both to walk more than we would have done otherwise.

Like others have said the Android support is currently lackluster, I'm eagerly awaiting the mobile sync rather than just data display but having it sync whenever I go near the laptop is enough to motivate me during the shift to be more active.

If you are trying to win a race of some sort then you need a HRM and a GPS enabled watch for pacing and for tracking training progress, sure.

If you just want to stay fit, look within yourself for motivation and partner up with someone and do it together. Motivation won't come from a gadget. And eat less and more healthy foods. Swim bike run row hike climb a mountain. You don't even need a gym or any gym equipment.

Some people want to do it, but need the nudging from external sources. Be it the guilt of paying fees they're not using that gets them to go to a gym, the pressure being around others to actually work harder, or those little pushes and reminders that pop up on your phone that you are being lazy, it WORKS for most people.

My wife uses an app called Lose It. It prompts her for food intake, calculates calories, sets goals, and monitors activity, and constantly pesters you to be doing something. If you have a pedometer or other device you can enter that infor, and she pairs it with Gym buddy (or some other apps) to calulate calories burned doing weight lifting, and her progress in fitness video games also goes in.

The little pestering works, and the biggest part is the calorie awareness of the food, she consistantly looses 2-4 lbs a week without actually changing her routine or impacting her life, it;s about awareness and follow through, and most people cannot generate that internally or they would not be unfit to start with. Do not belittle the nudges MOST people require or the value these apps and devices bring.

Only concern is that someone will turn this data into ad targeting.I can just see it now: You didn't get a good sleep last night because of the heavy traffic, and you wake up to see an ad for sleeping pills on your phone.

1) it;s YOUR data, they only get it if you SHARE it.2) I prefer them targeting me with ads vs being blasted with adds I have no association to the products they advertize. You will get ads, period, why is it a bad thing if they can (anonymously) send you ads that fit your lifestyle? Simple demographic targeting is easy and they get no identifiable info about you, it is completely harmless.

According to Withings CEO Cédric Hutchings, you can't improve your fitness without having solid data and good analysis.

Hmmm...whatever did we do to improve our fitness without computers? I'm pretty damn sure that 99% of the people on earth could improve their fitness just by exercising and eating well without all this solid data and good analysis. Maybe the other 1% is so fit that they need this.

WE USED CHARTS! We record this same data ON PAPER, and did the math BY HAND. 20 years ago, when you walked into a gym, they handed you your workout checklist, and you had to write down your food intake since your last time at the gym. 7-10 years ago, the machines started giving back some data, and made the forms easier to fill out, the your PT put the numbers in a computer program they had and printed out results and charts for you. Today it't all automatic and much more reliable. The only thing this changes is the ease of data collection, NOT the fact we're collecting it.

Fewer of us did it because of that burden, or we "fudged" numbers too readily because we could and the results were poor. Data IS required to improve your awareness of the quality and consistancy of your LIFESTYLE CHANGES that getting fit requires. if you do not have this data, then it's nothing other than a rollercoaster (and potentially unhealthy as well) diet.

If you just want to stay fit, look within yourself for motivation and partner up with someone and do it together. Motivation won't come from a gadget.

Bullshit. Motivation is entirely dependent on your personality. I happen to be fascinated by technology, it's no accident I make my living that way. The best strategy to build positive habits is to work at it incrementally, and that means you should absolutely exploit your existing habits as fully as possible.

Quote:

And eat less and more healthy foods. Swim bike run row hike climb a mountain. You don't even need a gym or any gym equipment.

People have a career and family and thus time and attention are scarce resources, why is this so hard to comprehend?

You seem offended? Why is that? I don't know you.

Your first statement, while it may be true that different people are motivated by different things, but when it comes to fitness it is a lifelong commitment that is only found within you. The only thing that helps is having a like minded partner to work out with. A gadget may make you go out and use it... for all of a few weeks. Then what?

I don't understand your second statement. How is driving to a gym, working out there while staring at your gadget, and driving back, less time consuming than just riding a bike straight off your front door, or driving to a swimming pool? What are you trying to say?

Besides, you are approaching this all wrong if you are trying to fit fitness into your lifestyle. Fitness should be an integral part of your lifestyle, not something you do as a chore every once in a while when you have time.

Walk to the grocery store next time. Carry the bags back home. Or ride the bike to work. That's what I'm talking about.

You seem thick headed, and unwilling to accept that your ideas and methods are not universal.

You sound like a PT who's afraid he's going to lose his job because this technology eliminates your reason for being.

People need EXTERNAL motivation.People in many cases need a companion to work out withPeople have busy lives and going to the mountains or taking a 2 hour run is simply not possible, or they live in places that's not feasible because of climate or a city environment. This technology doesn;t make you go to a gym, you can still do 100% of what you;re saying with this, but, it adds the logging/tracking features most people need, the motivation most people need, levels of competition with others they can't optherwise get in person, and the calorie management that can only be done with data at hand and not simply off the top of your head.

I can run on a treadmill while watching my kid do homework and while catching up on a show in the DVR, I can't do that on a bike outside.

I can walk up and down the stairs in my house while reading a book and do much the same, or have diner cooking while I'm working out. I can be on the phone and working out. I can tabulate the OPTHER daily activity that's NOT part of the workout, like a day walking around the office, or house cleaning, or yard work, because the tool provides me detailed time analysis and I do less guessing (and thus less fudging the real work for what I perceive I did).

I don't have one of these. My wife uses an iPhone app. She does some limited home workout and more importantly calorie management. We can't go to a gym, we can't ride bikes in the community safely, we can;t work out without otherwise paying a babysitter unless that workout is inside the house. We have a small weight machine and a treadmill we bought used for about the cost of 1 year's gym mmbership for one person. When she uses the app, she looses 2-4 lbs a week like clockwork, and feels good at the end of the day whenh she "earns" snacks and chocolate. When she's ignoring the app, she gains weight, even though she rarely eats those snacks at those times. It;s about tracking, consistancy, and reminders. IT WORKS. Get your head out of your ass.

While I don't use an activity tracker yet, I still like these devices and services. I use Runkeeper to track my running. And I get a real kick from running a bit longer, or a bit faster that on previous week. Sure, I could just run, without apps and GPS-tracking. But I like the data I get, it pushes me to try harder.

I also have a Withings smart scale and their blood pressure monitor. And I have tied them to Runkeeper, so all that data is aggregated. I'm in the process of getting a HRM that works with iPhone (so I can accurately measure the calories burned when running or at the gym), and I can tie that data to Runkeeper as well. And I might also get one of these activity trackers as well. Then I would have comprehensive data on not only when I'm running or at the gym, but also from when I'm sleeping or just hanging about.

Is all that data necessary? No. But it helps. It helps me to improve my results, to run further and faster, to walk more during the day, to get historical weight-data and blood-pressure. I'd say that more data is always better than less data. And since we can get that data more or less automatically now, I'd say its a win-win all around.

I'd love to see a comparison review of several of these products. I'm another who is interested, but the featuresets between devices have odd overlaps and even stranger gaps. I don't know which to pick to suit my needs. If anyone here has a link to such a review from a reliable independent source, could you please post it?